Rare Sept. 11 aerial photos released
New York ? Aerial photos of the World Trade Center — including these images of the north tower and surrounding area — were released this week, offering a rare and chilling view of the twin towers and the shroud of smoke and dust that settled over New York City.
The images were taken from a police helicopter — the only photographers allowed in the airspace near the skyscrapers on Sept. 11, 2001. They were obtained by ABC after it filed a Freedom of Information Act request last year with the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the federal agency that investigated the collapse.